Timeline

• ??.??.1758
• Admission of the cowrie snail as a small change substitute at variable rates (initially: silver Rupee = 3'640 cowries, around 1872: silver Rupee = 6'400 cowries)
• 01.05.1793
• Ordinance [No. XXXV] on the first standardization of the Sicca Rupee; effective immediately:
  - Silver: Rupee at 179⅔ English troy grains silver 11¾ ounces (Rupee: 11'399.67mg AG fine)
  - Gold: Mohur of 16 Rupees at 189.40 English troy grains fine gold (Rupee at 767.06mg AU fine => AU : AG = 14.862).
• 27.03.1806
• Ordinance [No. III] on the first standardization of the Farrukhabad Rupee; effective immediately (?):
  - Silver: Rupee at 173 English troy grains silver 0.955 (Rupee: 10'705.76mg AG fine).
• 21.03.1812
• Ordinance [No. II] on the standardization of the Benares Rupee; effective 01.05.1812:
  - Silver: Rupee at 175 English troy grains silver 0.965 (Rupee: 10'942.92mg AG fine).
• 24.12.1818
• Ordinance [No. XIV] on the second standardization of the Sicca Rupee; effective 01.01.1819:
  - Silver: Rupee at 191¹¹⁄₁₂ English troy grains silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 11'399.67mg AG fine)
  - Gold: Mohur of 16 Rupees at 204.71 English troy grains gold 22 carats (Rupee: 759.97mg AU fine => AU : AG = 15.000)
• 31.12.1819
• Ordinance [No. XI] on the second standardization of the Farrukhabad Rupee and the abolition of Benares Rupee; effective immediately:
  - Silver: Rupee at 180.23 English troy grains silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 10'705.49mg AG fine).
• 13.07.1833
• Ordinance [No. VII] on the third standardization of the Sicca and Farrukhabad Rupees as 15 Sicca Rupees = 16 Farrukhabad Rupees; effective immediately (?):
  - Silver: Sicca Rupee at 192 English troy grains silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 11'404.62mg AG fine)
  - - Silver: Farrukhabad Rupee at 180 English troy ounces silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 10'691.83mg AG fine).

Timeline

• 27.01.1801
• Council resolution on the first standardization of the Surat (Bombay) Rupee; effective immediately(?):
  - Silver: Rupee at 179 English troy grains silver 0.920 (Rupee: 10'671.09mg AG fine)
  - Gold: Mohur of 15 Rupees at 179 English troy grains gold 0.920 (Rupee: 711.41mg AU fine => AU : AG = 15.000)
• 05.12.1821
• Ordinance on the decimalisation of the sub-unit as Rupee = 100 Pice = 400 Reas; effective immediately (?)
• 06.10.1824
• Council resolution on the second standardization of the Bombay rupee; effective 16.10.1824:
  - Silver: Rupee at 180 English troy ounces silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 10'691.83mg AG fine).

Timeline

• 15.07.1807
• Council resolution on a coinage reform and the first standardisation of the Arcot (Madras) Rupee and the Madras Pagoda of 3½ Rupees; effective immediately(?):
  - Silver: Rupee at 186.70 troy grains silver 0.903 (Rupee: 10'921.77mg AG fine), recoined from Spanish Dollars
  - Silver: Pagoda at 653.45 English troy grains silver 0.903 (Pagoda: 38'235.61mg AG fine).
• 22.08.1807
• Council resolution on a coinage reform and a slight realignment of the Madras Pagoda to 3¹⁰³⁄₂₀₅ Rupees of 48 Dubs (or 960 Cash); effective immediately (?):
  - Silver: Pagoda at 653.45 English troy grains silver 0.903 (Pagoda: 38'235.61mg AG fine)
  - Copper: 44 Dubs (= 880 Cash) to the pound avoirdupois (2 Dubs = 40 Cash: 19.31 grams CU)
  - Note: A special "Regulating" Dub in copper was issued at about 75% of the weight of a normal Dub to compensate for underweighted silver Fanams which were rated at 3 Dubs + 1 Regulating Dub, instead of 4 Dubs.
• 09.02.1808
• Council resolution on the issuance of gold coins; effective immediately(?):
  - Pagoda at 45⁹⁄₁₁ English troy grains gold 22 carats (Pagoda: 2'721.56mg AU fine => AU : AG = 14.049).
• 19.06.1812
• Council resolution on the second standardization of the Madras Rupee and the discontinuation of the minting in the Pagoda standard; effective immediately(?):
  - Silver: Rupee at 180 Rupee at 180 English troy ounces silver 11¹⁄₁₀ ounces (Rupee: 10'789.03mg AG fine).
• 09.12.1817
• Council resolution on the third standardization of the Madras Rupee and the demonetization of the Pagoda currency; effective 07.01.1818:
  - Silver: Rupee at 180 English troy ounces silver 11 ounces (Rupee: 10'691.83mg AG fine
  - Gold: Mohur of 15 Rupees at 180 English troy ounces gold 22 carats (Rupee: 712.79mg AG fine => AU : AG = 15.000).

Timeline

• 17.08.1835
• Coinage act [No. XVII] of the East India Company on the unification of Indian coinage standards; effective 01.01.1836
• 01.09.1835
• Start of issuance of the new coinage:
  - the pre-1835 coinage was demonetized by notification [No. 2466] of 07.12.1877; effective 20.05.1878.
• 16.07.1861
• Currency act [Government paper currency, No. XIX] on the authority for issuing paper money after the establishment of the colonial rule; effective 01.03.1862:
  - The Banks of Bombay, Calcutta, Madras (Presidency Banks of the East India Company) retained the issuance privilege
  - The government ("Paper Currency Department") began issuance on 06.08.1861.
• 23.04.1862
• Coinage act [No. XIII] on the issuance of silver coins after the establishment of the colonial rule; effective 01.11 1862
• 28.10.1868
• Notification [No. 3287] on the rating of the British Sovereign at 10¼ Indian Rupees; effective immediately
• 06.09.1870
• Coinage act [No. XXIII] on the issuance of gold coins after the establishment of the colonial rule; effective immediately
• 28.03.1876
• Coinage act [Native Coinage Act, No. IX] allows the rulers of the Indian princely states to make their own coinage in the British Indian standard; effective immediately
  - only the states of Alwar, Bikanir, Dewas (Junior and Senior Branch), Dhar, and Sailana made use of this.
• 15.09.1899
• Currency act [No. XXII] on the adoption of the gold standard (the British Sovereign became legal tender at 15 Indian Rupees; effective immediately
• 02.03.1906
• Coinage act [No. III]; effective immediately
• 17.09.1920
• Currency act [(Amendment), No. XLV] on the new rating of the British Sovereign as 10 Indian Rupees; effective 01.10.1920
• 26.03.1927
• Currency act [No. IV] on the new rating of the British Sovereign as 13⅓ Indian Rupees; effective 01.04.1927
• 06.03.1934
• Law [Reserve Bank of India, Nr. II] on the establishement if an Indian central bank under private ownership; effective 01.04.1935
• 15.08.1947
• Indian Independence and transfer of the monetary sovereignty:
  - 17.03.1947: Bank act [Reserve Bank of India (Amendment), No. XI]; effective 01.04.1947
  - 18.04.1947: Bank act [Reserve Bank of India (Second Amendment), No. XXIII]; effective 15.08.1947
  - 18.04.1947: Currency act [(Amendment), No. XXVIII]; effective 15.08.1947
• 03.09.1948
• Law [Reserve Bank of India (Transfer to Public Ownership), No. 62] on the nationalization of the central bank; effective 01.01.1949
• 15.08.1950
• Start of issuance of post-independence banknotes and coins, the British-Indian currency was not demonetized
• 17.09.1955
• Coinage act [(Amendment), No. 31] on the decimalizion of the sub-unit, called "New" Paisa; effective 01.04.1957:
  - 24.04.1964: Coinage act [(Amendment), No. 34] on the abolition of the designation "New" in the denominations; effective 01.06.1964.
• 08.11.2016
• Announcement [RBI/2016-17/112] of a currency exchange with partial confiscation; effective immediately:
  - On 10.11.2016, banknotes of 1000, 500 Indian Rupees are demonetized
  - Per person a maximum of 4'000 Rupees new banknotes of 2000, 200 Rupees can be obtained at 1 : 1
  - Exceeding amounts, but not exceeding 50'000 Rupees are exchanged at 1 : 1 if sufficient proof of legitimate origin is provided
  - 30.12.2016: End of exchange period.

Valuation Regimes

• 1835-1899
• Fixed rate against silver. Base weight is the English troy pound / 16 ounces / 480 grains at 373.242 grams.
• 1899-1966
• Fixed rate against British Pound
• 1966-1971
• Fixed rate against US Dollar
• 1971-1975
• Fixed rate against British Pound
• 1975-
• Variable rate